Well packer



D. L. T. OCONNOR July 2l, 1936.

WELL PACKER Filed Oct. l, 1955 EER/wor. 0 'GaN/vol? INVFNTOR BY MonofATTORNEY Patented July 2l, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 11 Claims.

My invention relates to well packers and has particular reference topackers having circulating channels between the casing and flow pipes.

In my Patent No. 2,009,198 I have disclosed the construction of a packerwith circulating channels and an automatic valve normally closing thesechannels, but permitting them to be opened by a pressure from above thepacker, this pressure being used to force oil in the well to flow upwardthrough the central flow pipe. The packer is further provided with anordinary rubber expanding sleeve which is used to set the packer or sealit in a desired place in the casing pipe. A locking device is alsoprovided operable by the flow pipe and permitting the packer to be movedin the casing pipe while the expanding sleeve is kept inthe contractedposition.

I have found that it is sometimes and under certain conditions desirableto lock the valve in an open position while the packer is being loweredor raised in the casing pipe, in order to permit free circulation ofuids through the circulating channels.

- I have also found that it is desirable to provide the packer in itslower portion with a means for removing deposits of paraffin or similarwaxy or tarry substances from the inner wall of the casing pipe whilethepacker is being lowered into the well.l

The object of my invention is therefore to provide a packer withchannels for circulating fluids outside of the flow pipe and with anautomatic valve for these channels, with a means for maintaining thevalve in an open position when the packer is being moved in the casingpipe.

For this purpose I provide a tubular member .slidably fitted on theoutside of a valve block and connected with a locking device for theexpanding portion of the packer. This locking device is released orlocked by manually turning the flow pipe and moving it axially. Thetubular member is arranged so that it vraises the valve from its seatwhen the locking device is set or locked.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for removing orscraping oi waxy or tarry substances from the inner walls of the casingpipe while the packer is being lowered into the well.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for deiiecting theremoved waxy substances downward and away from the automatic valve.

My invention is more fully described in the accompanying specificationand drawing in which- Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of,my packer in alocked position with the rubber sleeve contracted and valve opened forfree movement of the packer in a casing pipe, Fig. 2 is asimilar view ofthe paclrer when it is set in the casing 5 pipe, the rubber sleeve beingexpanded and the valve released so as to be closed by its spring. Fig. 3is a partial outside view of the packer in its inoperative or lockedposition, Fig. 4 is a. sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1,Fig. 5 10 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1, Fig. 6 isa detail view of a modified construc` tion of a scraping portion of thepacker, Fig. 7 is a modified construction of a valve opening device, andFig. 8 is a detail view of another modil5 cation of the valve openingdevice.

My packer consists of a iiow pipe formed of a middle section I, a bottomor lower section 2, and an upper section 3, the latter representing thelower end of an ordinary iiow pipe extending to 20 the outside of thewell and through which oil or other uid is extracted from the well. Thesections I and 3 are joined together by a coupling 4 screwed on the endsof the pipes, and the pipes I and 2 are connected by a threaded coupling5. 25 The coupling 5 has radially extending ribs 6 connecting it with atubular member 1, channels 8 being formed between the coupling 5 and themember 1. 'Ihe coupling 5 and the member I form a valve block With aconcave spherical 30 valve seat 9 adapted to be closed by a convexspherical valve I0, A spring II presses the valve against the seat 9,the other end of the spring il resting against the upper surface of acylindrical block I2 screwed. on the end of the pipe 35 2. The lowerportion of the block I2 is provided with a recess I3. Holes I4 extendfrom this recess to the upper side of the block and provide passages forthe flow of a fluid through the block outside of the flow pipe. Theoutside di- 4c ameter of the cylindrical block I2 is slightly smallerthan the inside diameter of a casing pipe I5, and the lower edge of theblock I6 sharpened, being thereby adapted to scrape on paran and othersubstances adhering to the inside sur- 45 face of the casing pipe whilethe packer is being lowered. A delecting web I1 is formed on the insideof the block I2, an annular groove I8 being formed between the scrapingedge I6 and the deflecting web I'I. This groove causes shav- 5o ingrfrom the inner wall of the casing pipe to curve downward and to falldown, the inner space I3 being thereby protected against being cloggedby the paraiiin shavings.

vA tubular shell I9 is iitted by its lower end into 55 eter of thisshell is larger than the outside diameter of the ow pipe I so that anannular clearance 20 is formed between these'pipes, this clearance beingin communication with channels 2| between the inner and outer portions fthe valve block. With the valve I0 open it is possible therefore foriluids to fiow'through these longitudinal channels or passages outsideof the ow pipe, even if the packer is set or sealed in the casing pipeas shown in Fig. 2.

A sleeve 22 is slidably tted over the valve block 'l and is connected ontop with the lower end of an outer tubular shell 23. The latter hasconvex spring bars 2E pressing against the inner surface of the casingi5. The shell 23 has an L-shaped slot 25 engaging a pin 26 extendingfrom the inner shell i9. Straight spring bars 2l are attached to theshell 23 by their lower ends, the upper ends being attached to slips orserrated segmental members 28. These members have conically Ataperinginner upper portions sliding over con- 33 of a collar 36 attached to theupper end of the shellv i9.

When the outer and inner shells are locked together by the pin 26 movedinto the horizontal portion of the v -shaped slot, the sleeve 22 restsby its lower end against pins 35 fitted into the sides of the valve idforcing the latter away from the valve seat 9 against the tension of thespring il.

A modified construction of the scraping device is shown in Fig. 6. A.block 36 attached to the lower end of the pipe 2 is provided with sharpresilient knives or Scrapers 3l 'fastened with screws 38. The resiliencyof these Scrapers permits them to move over rough spots on the inside ofthe casing pipe. In case of damage to the scraping edges the knives canbe easily replaced by new ones.

A modified arrangement for opening the valve is shown in Fig. 7. Herethe sleeve 22 is replaced by a sleeve 39 having lugs 40 with recesses onthe lower ends fitting over pins 35 fastened to the valve l0. Four lugsand pins are shown in Fig. '1, although, of course, any suitable numbermay be used, preferably not less than two. The lugs are placed on thepins with the pin 26 locked in the slot 25, and in this position, withthe valve open, the packer islowered into the well. If desired, however,the lugs may be placed at the side of the pins, and then the valve willremain closed regardless of the position of the flow pipe in the packeror pin 26 in the slot 25. This is because the valve I0 has no operativeconnection with the pipes l, 2 or 3, and remains closed regardless ofthe position of the flow pipe in the packer, except for the operation ofthe valve opening sleeve 22 or 39.

Another modification is shown in Fig. 8 in which a sleeve 4l takes placeof the sleeve 22 and rests against lugs 43 atttached to the valve i0 byscrews 44. The operation of this device is similar to the vonevshown inFigs. 1 and 2.

The operation of my packer 'is as follows:

The packer is attached to the end of the ow pipe 3 by the coupling 4.The resiliency of the rubber sleeve 32 will tend to keep the collar 29against the shoulder 30 so that the sleeve will freely pass through theaperture in the casing pipe Il. By turning the packer on the vilow pipethe pin 26 is placed in the side portion of the slot 22 thereby'lockingthe outer shell 23 in a lowered position in relation to the inner shellI9, 5 so that the sleeve 22 will press on the pins 35 and depress thevalve l0 into an open position as shown ln Fig. 1. In this lockedposition with the valve 'open the packer is lowered into the well untilv a desired depth is reached. The ow pipe is then 10 turned (to the leftwith the left handed slots 25 as shown on the drawing) so as to bringthe pin 2S in line with the longitudinal portion of the slot 25, theouter shell being prevented from rotation by the friction of the springs28 against the inner 15 wall of the casing pipe. The flow pipe is thenpressed downward causing the collar 29 to slide under the slips 28. Thelatter will accordingly expand and engage the wall of the casing pipe.The further downward movement of the pipe 3 2Q will compress the rubbersleeve causing it to expand and seal the packer against the wall of thecasing pipe l5. The valve block l will slide accordingly below thesleeve 22 and will come to rest against the valve i@ as shown in Fig. 2.In this 25 position the valve will operate entirely automatically andindependently of the ilow pipe 3. It can be opened only by the pressureof a fluid (liquid or gas) from above the packer if this pressureexceeds the pressure of iluids under the 3o packer.

` My automatic valve renders the operation of the paclrer entirely'automatic. When there is high in the ow pipe, or if the flow becomestoo-slow for practical purposes, the pressure in the well may be raisedto a desired degree by pumping liquids or gases into the space in thecasing pipe around the flow pipe, and when this pressure exceeds thepressure under the packer, the valve automatically opens admitting theuids into the well.

Thescraper at the bottom of the packer cleans the casing pipe insidefrom dirt, parain and other matter, thereby rendering the sealing of thepipe by the rubber sleeve more eifective, and removing the dirt whichotherwise might become wedged in the valve opening. The scraped Wall ofthe casing pipe can be more readily engaged by the anchoring slips 28.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a ow pipe, the outer portion of said member beingadapted to be expanded by the movement 'of said flow-pipe for sealing awell, said member 60 being provided' with longitudinal passagesextending from one end ofthe packer to the other, a valve adapted toclose the passages, a yieldable means for closing said valve, said valvebeing adapted to be opened by the pressure of a fluid 65 in said wellabove the packer, and means to lock the valve in an open positioncoordinately with tending from one end`to the other, a valve adapted toclose said passages, a, yieldable means for closing said valve, saidvalve being adapted to be opened bythe pressure of a fluid in said wellabove the packer, means on said tubular member for locking saidexpanding portion in a contracted position, said locking means beingoperable by the ow pipe. and means connected with said locking means foropening the valve against said yieldable means.

3. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a ow pipe, the upper outer portion of said memberbeing adapted to be expanded by the movement of said flow pipe forsealing a well, said member being provided with longitudinal passagesextending from one end to the other,'a valve adapted'to close saidpassages at their lower ends, a yieldable means for closing the valve,said valve being adapted to be opened by the pressure of a lluid in saidwell above Vthe packer, an outer member slidably litted on saidcylindrical member below the expanding portion, said outer member beingadapted in its lowered position to open the valve, and means to locksaid outer member in its lowered position with the valve open, saidlocking means being adapted to be operated by the movement of theilow-pipe.A

4. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a iiow pipe, the upper' outer portion of saidmember being adapted to be expanded by'the movement of said ilow pipefor'sealing a well, said'member being provided with longitudinalpassages extending from one end to the other, a valve adapted to closesaid passages, said valve being adapted to be opened by the pressure ofa fluid in said well above the packer, an outer member slidably fittedon said cylindrical member, anchoring slips on said outer member incooperation with said expanding portion and adapted to engage the .wall'of said well, an extension on said outer member adapted to open-,the-valve when said slips are moved into inoperative position, and means tolock the outer member in its inoperative position with the valve open,said locking means being operable by the movement of the flow pipe.

5. In a well packer, the combinationv of a cylindrieal member mounted onthe lower portion of a ow pipe, the upper outer portion of said memberbeing adapted to be expanded by the movement of said flow pipe forsealing a well, said member being provided with longitudinal passagesextending from one end to the other, a valve adapted to close saidpassages, said valve being adapted to be opened by the pressure of a uidin said well above the packer, an outer member slidably fitted on saidcylindrical member, anchoring slips on said outer member in cooperationwith said expanding portion for engaging the wall of said well, atubular extension on said outer member, the outer edge of said extensionbeing adapted to engage said valve and to open it when said outermember-is moved into inoperative position for said slips, and means tolock the outer member in said inoperative position with said valve open,said tubular extension forming a clearance with saidvalve for thepassage of iluids in its locked position.

6. In a ,well'packen the combination of a cylindrical member mounted'onthe lower portion of a, ow pipe. the upper outer portion of said memberbeing adapted to be expanded ,by the movement of the now pipe forsealing a well. saidV therein. Y

member being provided with longitudinal passages extending from one endto the other, a valve adapted to close said passages and being adaptedto be opened by the pressure of fluids above said packer, an outermember slidably tted on said cylindrical member, lugs on the sides ofthe valve, an extension on said outer member adapted to engage said lugsand to open the valve, and means to lock said outer member with thevalve opened, said locking means being adapted to be released by themovement of the ilow pipe for expanding said upper outer portion of thecylindrical member.

7. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a llow pipe, the outer portion of said member beingadapted to be expanded by the movement of said ilow pipe for sealing awell, said member being provided with longitudinal passages extendingfrom one end to the other, a valve adapted to close said passages andadapted to be opened by the pressure of a lluid in said well above saidpacker, a cylindrical block attached to the lower end ofl said packer,and means on said block for scraping the walls of said well when saidpacker is being lowered therein, said block being provided with passagesfor said iluid outside of said flow pipe.

8. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe-lower portion of a flow pipe, the outer portion of said member beingadapted to be expanded by the movement of said flow pipe for sealingsaid well, a cylindrical block attached to the lower end of said packer,and an annular sharp edge on said block for scraping the wall of saidwell while said packer is being lowered therein.

9. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a, flow pipe, the outer portion of said memberbeing adapted to be expanded by the movement of said ilow pipe forsealing a well, a block attached to the lower end of said ow pipe undersaid packer and provided with a central recess in communication withsaid flow pipe, and scrapers on the outside of said block for the insidewall of said well.

10. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a flow pipe, the outer portion of said member beingadapted to be expanded by the movement of said ilow pipe for, sealing awell, a blockattached on the outside to the lower end of said ow pipeunder said packer, and resilient Scrapers removably attached to theoutside of said block for scraping the inner wall of said well.

11. In a well packer, the combination of a cylindrical member mounted onthe lower portion of a ow pipe, the outer portion of said pipe beingadapted to be expanded by the movement of said ilow pipe for sealing awell, said -member being provided with longitudinal passages extendingirom one end to the other, a valve adapted to close said passages, aspring adapted to keep said valve closed, said valve being adapted to beopened by the pressure of a iiuid in said well above said packer, acylindrical block attached to the lower end of said flowpipe below saidpacker, said spring being placed between said valve and said block, andmeans on the. outside of Vsaid block for scraping the inner wall of saidwell when said packer is being lowered VDERMOT L. T. OCQNNOR.

